


We wait

by JoyBooth



Category: Pitch (TV 2016)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-23
Updated: 2019-01-27
Packaged: 2019-08-06 05:06:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 4,945
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16381982
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JoyBooth/pseuds/JoyBooth
Summary: She hadn't called since the accident. Finally, after another sleepless night, Mike Lawson made the call.





	1. Chapter 1

Mike rolled over for what felt like the hundredth time. Flashbacks flooded his mind. Her pained gasp echoed in the silence. The panicked look in her eyes was heartbreaking. He was never going to get any sleep at this rate. It was only 2:10, but he figured he might as well get up. 

He walked into the kitchen and got a glass of water. Ginny hadn’t called that night. She hadn’t called once since the game. He had considered going to the hospital, but then he ran into Rachel after the game. She was asking him what happened. What went wrong, when he realized it was him. He had let his desire to win, his desire to see her do the impossible, surpass what he knew was right. He had dragged Ginny into his mess of a life. 

He flipped through his phone. He wouldn’t call. It was too late, and yet… 

It rang once. 

“Lawson?” she sounded tired but not like she had been asleep. 

“Baker, shouldn’t you be asleep?” 

“If you thought I was asleep, why did you call me?”

She had him there. “I… uh…”

“You were just floundering in an ocean of self-recrimination and wanted me to absolve you?”

“Yeah, I mean no, I mean yes to the first part, but no, I would never expect you to…”

“Mike, it is not your fault. I decided to play. I knew the risks, but I wanted to play.”

“I should have stopped you.”

“It’s cute that you think you could have.”

“I’m your captain, Baker. Show some respect.”

“You are not my captain, not anymore. I’m out of the game.” she sighed. 

Mike felt like he had been punched in the gut. “You can come back from this, Baker. ESPN is reporting that it a UCL, you get a tommy john, you do a little PT and you’ll be ready for next season.”

She didn’t say anything. 

“It is just a UCL, right?”

Still nothing. 

“Baker?”

“I have a UCL, yeah.” 

He knew there was more to it though. “Baker?”

“When they ran the tests, they found something else.”

“What?” What could possibly be so bad that she would give up baseball. 

“I’ve been having some trouble breathing lately,” 

“Ginny, what are you not telling me?”

“Turns out I have chronic kidney disease. I need a transplant.”

“Can’t Will give you one? That’s how it works right? Siblings are usually a good match?”

“Turns out we are half siblings, and he isn’t a match.”

“Half siblings?”

“Yeah, my mom has been hiding Kevin for a lot longer than even I knew.”

Mike didn’t know what to say. He knew how important her father was to her. Finding out that he wasn’t her biological father must have been devastating, and yet she told him as if she were talking about the weather. “Are you… uh… What I mean is… why didn’t… how could?”

“Yeah, I did that already. The why? The how? The what the ever-loving fuck? The how is this soap opera my life?” 

“Ok, what can I do? We should get you on the list, right? That’s what you do? We could make an announcement. I’m sure people would be lining up to get tested.”

“Yeah, no, I’m not doing that.”

“Doing what?”

“I’m on the list, but I don’t want people lining up to give Ginny Baker a kidney. It just feels wrong. I don’t want special treatment. I not jumping the list.”

“Then what? We wait?”

“We? Lawson, what makes you think you have anything to do with this?”

“You need someone to talk to, Baker. This is some heavy stuff, and I just happen to be a really good listener.”

“Let’s say I take you up on that, what’s in it for you?”

“Well, hopefully, in the long run, I get my pitcher back, but even if you don’t make it back onto the field, I get to spend time with my best friend.”

“Best friend?” she asked dubiously. 

“Did you see me saying goodbye to anyone else in that bar?”

She smiled. “Alright then, we wait, together.”


	2. A yes!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mike helps Ginny figure out her next step.

It took a week of homemade lunches, hanging out and dips in his pool for her to finally open up. She was on the edge of the pool with her legs bobbing in the water, when out of nowhere she asked, “Do you think he knew?”

Mike looked up from his laptop. “Your dad?”

“Bill, yeah.”

“Ginny, just because he isn’t your biological father, doesn’t mean anything. Your dad is your dad.”

“Ok, then, what does that make Kevin?”

“A sperm donor?” Mike shrugged, ambling over to sit next to her. “Take it from a guy who never had a dad. Bill Baker is your dad. It doesn’t matter if he knew or not, because he never treated you any different than his biological son.”

“If anything, we were closer than he and Will.”

“That’s what I’m saying. He loved you as his daughter. Why does it matter if he knew?” 

“It just does. He deserved to know. Maybe things would have been different.”

“You could ask your mom.”

“That would involve talking to her, and I am not doing that right now.”

“Gin, I know you’re angry, but your mom’s gotta be going out of her mind worrying about you.” 

“Maybe she should have thought about that before lying to me my whole life.”

Mike didn’t say anything for a moment. If he was being honest, he didn’t know how he would have reacted to such a life altering revelation on top of which she was facing a serious medical condition and the end of a career she had been working toward her whole life. 

“So, say he did know. He knew, but he raised you and loved you and taught you everything he knew. Is that what you want?”

“Yea,” she dragged her fingers through the water. “I hope he knew, and he still wanted me.”

“But that would mean he kept if from you too,” 

Ginny sucked her lip between her teeth. “I guess I didn’t think of it like that.”

“Did Kevin know?”

“What do you mean, Of course he knew.”

“She didn’t tell you. She could have kept it from him too.”

“But he had to know,” she insisted.

“The best way to keep a secret is to tell no one.”

“Fine, maybe he didn’t know. That doesn’t mean I have to like him. I mean, he still had an affair with my mom for years.”

“I’m not trying to convince you to like the guy. I just want you to think about the whole picture. Your dad is your dad. Nothing is ever going to change that. The only real question is where do we go from here?”

“I told Will about the list, and not getting special attention, but he thinks I should make a charity out of it. If a bunch of people get tested, they might be willing to donate even if they aren’t a match for me. He says it could save a lot of lives.”

“He’s not wrong about that. Remember that dad on ninja warrior. His daughter got the transplant she needed and now he is competing again to raise awareness for other kids in need.”

“I know, but what if it becomes a thing. Will was taking about making t-shirts and fundraising…”

“And you’re worried that it will be like the thing with Ev and the restaurant?”

She looked away, but he knew without her saying. 

“He doesn’t have to be in control of anything. Between us, Amelia and Eliot, I’m sure we could get this thing off the ground. We could rope in some other players too. I mean it’s the off season. We are just pulling them away from the driving range or couch.”

“About that, Amelia fired me, or she quit. She isn’t my manager anymore.”

“When did that happen?”

“It doesn’t matter. I’m on my own and moving to the couch from here seems exhausting. Running some sort of charity? I just don’t know.”

“We could start with a news piece and talk about how people can get tested if they are interested in donating a kidney.” 

“I guess, but I hope you’re not thinking of who I think you’re thinking of to do it…”

“I mean she has been texted you for an exclusive since your last game…”

“Fine, but I swear to god if she makes me cry or brings up the whole father thing I will walk.”

“She doesn’t know about your dad.” 

“Really? I thought you would have told her.”

“What you say to me, is between you and me.”

“Ok, then I guess I’ll call and set something up.” She sighed, getting to her feet. Mike got up a moment slower, his knee popping as he stood. 

“And while you’re on the phone, I’ll get dinner started. How do you feel about Chicken Parm?”

“I feel like I might move in if you keep feeding me.”

“I’ll take that as a yes.”


	3. What just happened?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Things never go to plan.

“It’s ok to cry, you know? Cameras are all gone now. Hell, I would have cried on camera. Did you ever see that interview from 2007 when we almost clenched the pennant? I was a damn wreck.” They were back in his car headed back to San Diego, when he glanced over and saw something glistening on her cheek.

“It might look like I’m crying, but I’m just too hot. Those interview lights were burning my retinas.” 

“and just your eyes are sweating?”

She glared at him. 

“Right, so, what now?”

Ginny shook herself. “I guess we see how it goes. Either someone will be a match or not. What’s going on with you and Rachel? I thought you were trying to make that work?”

“Is this really what you want to talk about right now?”

“I wouldn’t have asked, if I didn’t want to know.”

“Fair enough,” he sighed, scratching his beard. “She came back because things weren’t working out with the new fiancé. We just… I guess I had been wanting what we had back, but I think that is gone. We can’t be who we were before. She has her life and her show in LA. I’m not ready to give up the team and my life here. We both knew it, but old patterns are hard to break.” 

“I’m sorry.” 

“It’s alright, I think I am really ready to move on now.”

“Does that mean you are giving up on tinder and signing up for match.com?”

“Baker, we both know I do not, nor have I ever had a tinder. What I have can’t be translated to apps.”

“Gonorrhea?” she laughed.

“Ha Ha, someone thinks she’s funny.”

“I am funny, but seriously. Does this mean I get to set you up with someone your own age? I think there is a senior center in my neighborhood. I am a great wing woman slash matchmaker.”

“Ouch, I thought we had sidelined the age jokes.”

“It was a temporary reprieve, in exchange for food.”

“and if I make Crème Brulee again?”

“Mango or plain?”

“Mango, if we stop at the farmer’s market and the mangos are looking good.”

“I can agree to those terms.” She turned the radio up and started singing along with some Ariana song he didn’t recognize. 

She was drying the last dish from dinner when her phone rang. 

“This is Ginny Baker… oh… ok… yes… I understand… yes… Thank you. Have a good night.” Conflicting emotions had covered her face, but when she put the phone down she sunk onto the stool. 

Mike waited patiently for nearly five minutes watching the time tick by on the oven. Finally, he gave up. “Gin?”

She lifted her head slowly, looking a little lost. “Apparently, over 200 people got tested today.”

She didn’t look happy though. 

“No match?”

She shook her head.

“That’s ok. This was the first day. There’s still time. We have time. I have even been in yet, what if we’re a perfect match?” he grinned, waggling his brow at her, but if anything her face grew even more grave. 

“Don’t even joke about that.” She got to her feet. “God, this was stupid. I’m going to go.” She started looking around the room for her things while typing on her phone. 

“Wait, I was just… what’s wrong? Would it be so bad if we were a match? I mean, I know I’m not young like you, but…”

“I didn’t want to do this. I didn’t want to do any of this, and you pushed me into it and I can’t...” she finally found her other shoe and slipped it on. 

“I’m sorry, Ginny. I didn’t mean to push you. Don’t go. Let’s talk about this.” 

“There’s nothing to talk about, Lawson.” Her phone pinged. “My uber is here. I have to go.”

Mike watched her walk out the door in shock. What the hell just happened? He wondered.


	4. A match

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mike figures out what upset Ginny.

Not knowing what else to do, Mike wondered back to his favorite chair. He was still puzzling it over when his phone rang. He was surprised to see Blip’s name on the screen. 

“Hey?” Mike answered curiously. 

“Hey, yourself man. Is Ginny around?” 

“Baker? Why would she be here?”

“Dude, don’t even try. Ev and Gin talk every day. You honestly didn’t think I knew you two have been attached at the hip lately?”

Mike sighed. “She was here, but she went home a while ago. Did you try calling her?”

“Of course, I tried 6 times. It went straight to voicemail. I have something important to talk to her about.”

“She got a call from the hospital before she left. Apparently, there were no matches today. She seemed pretty upset about it. Maybe she just needed some space to process everything.”

What?” Blip asked, clearly confused. 

“Oh, I thought you would know because you knew we were hanging out. Ginny needs a kidney and…”

“I know, if hadn’t already known, I saw Rachel’s show, but that’s what I was calling about. I’m a match.”

Mike’s heartbeat suddenly skyrocketed. He replayed her leaving in his mind. She hadn’t actually said there was no match. She had said she hadn’t wanted to do this. He knew she felt guilt for asking. Asking strangers was awkward, but asking a friend, a friend who had volunteered should have been better. Right?

“Uh, I don’t know. Maybe there was a mess up in the system. It’s late though, she is probably asleep. I would say call again tomorrow if you haven’t heard from her in the morning.”

“Yeah, you’re probably right, but if you see her, tell her to give me a call.”

“I will.” Mike promised. He intended to see her much sooner than he let on. As soon as he hung up the phone, he headed out of the house. Her apartment was 20 minutes from his house and he used the time to think of something to say. He knew she would still be upset, but he wasn’t exactly sure why. 

He was still tying to come up with something as he knocked on her door. 

She knew who was knocking without looking. A large part of her wanted to shout at him to go away, but she had been trying to maintain a level of anonymity with her neighbors, and yelling at her ex-captain through the door would blow that straight to hell. 

She walked to the door slowly thankful that he had not continued to knock or start shouting himself. 

He walked in without saying anything. She merely stepped back to allow him entrance. The sound of the tv led his way to the couch and he sat in a slump, eyes locked on coverage of... 

“Why in god’s name are you watching luge?”

Ginny slumped down next to him. “Firstly, it’s skeleton. Face first is skeleton, feet first is luge, and secondly, what the hell else am I supposed to do?”

“Off the top of my head? I’d say call back your best friend, who you’ve described as a second brother?”

“He called you?” she sighed, sinking further into his side and her eyes dropped closed in sharp emotion. 

“He did. He said he left several messages.”

“He did.” She admitted without opening her eyes. 

“And when the hospital called earlier, they told you he was a match?” 

“They did.” 

“I don’t understand, Gin. I thought this was a good thing? You need a kidney. Blip wants to give you one. What’s the problem?”

Ginny groaned. “I know you don’t understand. No one will understand, but I don’t want his.”

Mike bit back his first reaction. “Can you tell me what you’re thinking? Maybe if we talk it out I’ll understand.”

“I’m sick. That is a fact and facts don’t change, but Blip’s not. Blip is a healthy young man with a wife and two kids and a job that depends on his physical wellbeing. How can I ask him to give that up? How can I put him at risk when he has so much more to lose?”

“He volunteered.”

“He doesn’t want me to die. I don’t want to die, but do you know what this will do to him? Every surgery has inherent risk, and the recovery time. He will be out most, if not all, of next season. It will give me what I need to survive, but he is losing something. His body will have to adjust to a totally new normal.”

Mike sat quietly for a moment watching people hurl themselves down an ice track. “So, you didn’t want to make it a thing because you didn’t want to know who you were hurting?”

“I know it sounds awful, but truthfully, a little bit of me didn’t want to know. I was hoping it would be a call that they had a kidney that was a match, not a person.”

“What will you do?”

“I don’t know. If I take it, he might resent me in the end and if I don’t…”

“He will never forgive you.”

“I just wish there was another way.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Reminder that the valentines day gift exchange sign ups are happening now! I'm signed up. Are you? sign ups are open until jan 10.


	5. a knock

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> a knock at the door changes everything, again.

A knock at the door woke them both at almost the same moment. In hind sight, staying the night might not have been their best idea. Nothing had happened, but after an emotionally draining day, Mike was falling asleep on her couch, so she offered him half her bed. It was practical, driving tired was almost as bad as driving drunk. 

“Who do you think it is?” Mike asked. 

“You told Blip I’d call him in the morning, right?” 

Mike nodded. Ginny checked her phone, but it was only 8 am. 

“Virginia Louise Baker!” her mother’s voice echoed through the paper-thin walls. 

“Fuck,” Ginny groaned. “Just a minute, Mom.”

“I would offer to climb down the fire escape, but I’m 34 years old…”

“It’s fine. We’ll just say,” she glanced around the room and spotted his sweats. “we were on our way to an early morning work-out.” 

“Gotcha,” Mike pulled his shirt and sweats on. 

A minute later she opened the door for an irate looking Janet Baker. Kevin stood awkwardly a few steps back. 

“It’s about time!” Janet snapped. 

“Mom! Come in and for god’s sake keep your voice down.”

Janet swept into the living room with a critical eye. “I would say I’m sorry for raising my voice, but if you would have answered your phone any of the 57 times I called you, I wouldn’t have had to fly across the country.”

“I need some time, Mom. Why can’t you understand that?”  
“What you need is a kidney. That’s why I’m here.” 

“You’re not a match.” Ginny knew her mom had been tested when Will was. 

“I’m not, but your father…”

“My father’s dead.” Ginny snapped.

Janet gritted her teeth. “Kevin was tested once we figured out…”

“That you had lied to me my whole life?”

“Ginny,” Mike sighed, coming out of the kitchen with a tray of coffee and mugs. 

“Mr. Lawson, what are you doing here?” Janet asked. 

“Baker and I had an early work out. I figured after your long flight coffee was in order.”

The older Baker raised an eyebrow at that but moved on. “Kevin is a donor match.”

“I already have a match.”

“Who?” her mother asked. 

“Blip, we found out yesterday. I guess you came all this way for nothing,” Ginny answered spitefully. 

“Ms. Baker, would you excuse Ginny and I? I just need to speak to her for a minute,” Mike asked.

“This is a family matter, Mr. Lawson. I don’t know why you are still here, but I think it is time to go.”

“He’s here because he was actually invited, unlike you.” Ginny said, grabbing Mike’s hand and dragging him into the kitchen. As soon as the door closed, she deflated.

“I’m not telling you what to do Rookie, but you were just saying you wanted another way. If another match shows up on your literal doorstep, don’t you think you should at least talk to him?”

“No,” 

“No?”

“Yes,” she sighed. “But I don’t even know him. I don’t want him in my life. I don’t want him. Why… what did I do to deserve this?”

“You don’t deserve any of this, but here we are. We have to just make the next best decision.”

“We?”

“Well, you, but I’ll have your back, whatever you decide.”

“but you think I should talk to him?”

“It can’t… You know what? It could hurt. You could find out things you don’t want to know, but I think you are tired of other people deciding what you know.”

It took some convincing, but finally Janet agreed to give Ginny time to talk to Kevin alone. Mike offered to take Janet to Ginny’s favorite bakery to pick up some breakfast. It turned out that Mike was right. Janet had told Kevin that Ginny was Bill’s daughter, and he never had any reason to doubt until Will’s test came back. He was still struggling with the fact that he had a daughter he barely knew, but he wanted to help her if he could. 

After a tense breakfast, Mike drove the older couple to their hotel. He didn’t hear from Ginny for the rest of the day. He did hear from Blip that she had called him to let him know that she had more than one match and was talking to her doctor about her best option. 

Mike was in bed that night, thinking of Ginny, as he often did when his phone rang. 

“Baker?”

“Lawson, it’s almost midnight. Shouldn’t you be asleep?”

“If you thought I was asleep, then why did you call me?”

“I…uh…”

“You needed to talk it out?”

“Yeah, I guess. I mean the doctor says Kevin is healthy. There’s no reason not to take him up on his offer.”

“But?”

“I don’t want to owe him anything.”

“What did the doc say about Blip?”

“He’s young. He’s healthy, but the recovery time would probably cut his next season in half.”

“He knew that though. He told me he’s talked to Oscar and they will work it out.”

“I know, he told me too.”

“You don’t have to decide today.”

“I could come back,” she said tentatively.

Mike’s breath caught. “I thought you said…”

“I didn’t think, I mean, it’s early stages. Doc says I could be back mid-season if things go perfectly.”

“How soon?”

“The sooner the better.”

“So…”

“Yeah, I have a choice to make.”


	6. Surgery day

“I wanted you to tell me to chose Blip,” she sighed, the nurse had just done her last checks, and said they would be heading into surgery soon. 

“I know.” He admitted. 

“You do? Then why didn’t you?”

“Wasn’t my place.”

“What if it was?”

“Ginny…” his voice was soft but firm.

“I don’t mean what if it was you in my place. I mean what if you were more than my friend. If we were a… something, what would you have said?”

“I still would have said it was your decision. I agree with and understand all the reason why you picked him, and I understand how hard it was for you to decide. I didn’t have anything else to add. If I had I would have told you because we are a something. I just don’t know what yet.”

“What if I said I wanted to call it all off?”

“Cancel the surgery, or reschedule?”

“I don’t know either,” she shrugged, chewing her lip and picking at the tape holding the IV in her arm. Mike pulled her hand into his and squeezed. 

“I can call the nurse right now, if you want, but I don’t think you do?”

“I don’t, but I’m scared.”

“Of what?”

“That I made the wrong choice. That something will go wrong with him. That my body will reject the kidney, and all of this will be for nothing. That I die on the table. That I don’t die but can’t come back to the game I’ve dedicated my life too.”

“I’m not going to sugar coat it for you, Rookie. Those are all valid concerns, and quite frankly, they scare the hell out of me too.”

Ginny glared at him. “You’re supposed to say everything is going to be fine.”

“I hope it will be, but I don’t know. Do you want me to say it anyway, or distract you?”

She thought about it for a moment. “Distract me.”

“Ok. Did you know that Mr. Potato head was the first toy to be advertised on tv?”

“No,” 

“When I was six, I really wanted one, but my mom was between jobs. We were living in our car. My birthday was coming, but I figured she would forget, or just not be able to get it. By some miracle, she did. I woke up and there it was. I took that damn thing everywhere with me. I named him Mr. Poe. He sat on my desk at school. He went to the park, and the library…”

“What happened to him?”

Mike blushed a bit. “He is in a box in my closet. I always thought I’d give it to my kid someday, but…” he shrugged. 

Ginny wanted to say something, to comfort him, but she couldn’t decide what to say. The nurse came in before she could figure it out.

“Are you ready, Ms. Baker?”

“As ready as I’ll ever be,” she sighed. 

He was in her room when she woke up. “Do you ever go home?” she teased.   
“I will when you do. How are you feeling?”

Ginny dipped her chin. His comment made her happy, and yet a small part of her was uneasy. “I’m feeling fine, better than I have in a while. You could go, if you want.”

“Of course, I could, but I don’t want to, unless you want me to.”

“No.”

They lapsed in silence for a few minutes. 

“Have you seen my mom?”

“I sat in the waiting room with her while you were in surgery.”

“Thank you, that was probably a good thing.” 

“I did get to ask her about a certain poster which was totally hung over your bed.”

Ginny groaned. 

“I also got to hear about Roger.”

“I changed my mind, I think I want you to go.”

Mike laughed. “It’s cute. I’ve never met someone who had a pet squirrel before.”

“He wasn’t a pet, he was my… friend.”

Mike’s eyes softened. He wanted to tell her that he loved her, but he wasn’t sure if it was too much. 

“What?” she asked. The look he was giving her was so full of affection, she didn’t know how to handle it.   
“I’ll tell you later.”

She wanted to push, but she wasn’t sure she would like the answer. 

“Do you want me to check in on your mom and Kevin?”

“If you don’t mind.”

Kevin was in his room, but he wasn’t awake yet. Janet said the doctor insisted that was normal. She asked Mike to sit with him, while she went to check on Ginny. He agreed, though the situation was beyond awkward. Staring at the man he could see bits of Ginny in his face. He wondered if his own father was the same. He wondered if Dave would have made this sacrifice for him. He didn’t think so. The man had handed them some money to disappear twice. 

“How is she?” Kevin asked, startling Mike out of his thoughts. 

“Good, she asked me to check on you.”

Kevin gave a small smile. “She was always such a sweet girl.”

“Can I ask you something?”

“I really never knew. I didn’t question what Janet told me.”

“No, that wasn’t… but if you had known?”

“I don’t know. Bill was good to her. He loved that girl more than anything in the world.”

Mike had heard about some of the elder Baker’s methods of encouragement and wasn’t quite sure about that. “How are you?”

“Honestly? I feel like shit. They said I would, but I didn’t expect it to be this bad.”

Mike blinked in surprise.  
“But don’t tell her that. Say I’m doing ok, just a little tired.”

Mike nodded he could respect the man’s wishes. “Was it worth it?”

It was Kevin’s turned to look surprised. “I can’t believe you would ask me that. I’ve seen the way you look at her.”

Mike couldn’t disagree. Luckily, Janet chose that moment to come back. Mike excused himself and went back to Ginny’s room. She was asleep again. He sat down with a crossword and waited.


End file.
